At Sri Nandan Acharya Bhavan (2)

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Sri Nabadwip Dham Parikrama, Day One
Antardwip, 23 March 2021, part 2
Translated from Bengali

This place is a very famous and very auspicious place because Gaura and Nityananda Prabhu met here for the first time when Nityananda Prabhu came to Mayapur from Sri Ekachakra Dham.

One day, Mahaprabhu told all the devotees, "Srivas, Chandrasekhara! Look, one great personality has come to the dham! You must find Him and bring Him here!" They went to look for that great personality. Although there were not so many houses in Mayapur at that time, nobody could find Him. (It is said in Sri Chaitanya-bhagavata that Nityananda Prabhu is a very great and hidden personality, it is not so easy to find Him!) Coming back to Mahaprabhu, they said, "Prabhu, whom did You mean? We have not found anyone." Then, Mahaprabhu said, "So, you cannot find Him? All right, I will go Myself then!" Mahaprabhu came to this house of Nandan Acharya (Nandan Acharya 'bhavan') and saw somebody sitting in front of it. They are such old and intimate friends! They are Gaura and Nitai, Krishna and Balaram, They are one, but They come in two forms. They are non-different from each other, but to perform Their pastimes They come in two forms (as Gaura and Nitai).

There is no difference between Guru and Krishna—Krishna comes in the form of a Guru to perform His pastimes and preach the glory of the Lord. Nityananda Prabhu is like that too—He is ashraya vigraha (He gives shelter), and Gauranga Mahaprabhu is visaya vigraha (the object of worship).

So, when Mahaprabhu saw Nityananda Prabhu sitting in front of the house here, They embraced each other and began to roll on the ground. Then everyone understood, "Oh, this is that great personality!" After that, Mahaprabhu performed His pastimes here together with Nityananda Prabhu.

We have come here by a great fortune—this is that very place where Mahaprabhu and Nityananda Prabhu met for the first time. Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj purchased this land and made a temple. At first he thought, "I will make a small temple," but Srila Sridhar Maharaj said, "Why a small temple? So many devotees will come here, it is necessary to make a big temple. This is how this temple was made.

Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj was a disciple of Srila Prabhupad Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur. When Srila Prabhupad left his body, Srila Goswami Maharaj went back to his home in Patrasayer and even got married. A few days later, Srila Sridhar Maharaj came to him and requested him to come back saying, "You have to preach Mahaprabhu's conception, Prabhupad's conception. Who will preach if you sit here with your family?" Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj left everything and he came back with Srila Sridhar Maharaj. Before that, he told Srila Sridhar Maharaj, "Yes, I can come back, but you must give sannyas to me. If you do not give me sannyas, I will not come." Srila Sridhar Maharaj agreed to give him sannyas and the name Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj. Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj was a great guru, but he would invite his sannyas-guru (Srila Sridhar Maharaj) to his birthday every year and he would give all presentations that his disciples gave that day to his sannyas-guru. I have also heard from Gurudev that Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj gave full arati and puja to Srila Sridhar Maharaj in Govardhan in front of all his disciples. One year, Srila Sridhar Maharaj could not come on his birthday, and Srila Goswami Maharaj said, "Srila Sridhar Maharaj, my sannyas-guru, comes every year and gives me one more year of life. But this year he could not come, I may not be alive next year." Srila Goswami Maharaj left his body that same year.

You can see the samadhi mandir of Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj here. Also, Pujyapad Srila Bhakti Kiran Giri Maharaj was a disciple of this temple—he used to lead our Nabadwip Dham parikrama. We have printed his photograph in Sri Nabadwip Dham Mahatmya-mukta-mala, it is very nice. He was very old and very great Vaishnav. I remember he would eat one kg of rice at a time...

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